In Victoria, Texas, Illegal Immigration Fight Happening at the Local Level

Local Law Enforcement and Other Services Need the Millions Being Spent on Bigger Projects

VICTORIA, Texas - There aren't many more hot-button issues in this presidential election year than illegal immigration. All across the country, from the Mexican border to the Canadian, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, Americans are choosing sides in the debate over illegal immigration.

The federal government is considering expanding the fence along the Mexican border to prevent the untold numbers of illegal immigrants who make the dangerous trek into the U.S. every day. But in many small community near the border, law enforcement officials are wonder why the government is willing to spend millions on a fence that many say will not do what it is intended to do, while the police and sheriffs' deputies on the front lines cannot afford to track down and deal with the immigrants that are crossing through their jurisdictions every day.

In Victoria County, Texas, which lies along U.S. Highway 59 - a major route for transporting illegal immigrants and drugs to Houston - the county sheriff and police are tasked with maintaining order. But they often find themselves at a loss when major incidents happen, both in equipment and manpower, and struggle to find the funding necessary to handle these massive undertakings.

The smaller communities of Texas, as well as the other border states, deserve more support by the federal government. While the men and women on Capitol Hill want to make grand statements concerning illegal immigration - no matter which side of the issue they choose to take - the men and women on the front lines of the action - the local peace officers and staffs of the regional law enforcement agencies, are struggling just to be able to do their jobs. The extension of the border fence may grab headlines and allow politicians to prove that they are taking a stand against more illegal immigrants flooding into the U.S., but the reality is that the money would most likely be better used if at least some of it went to fund operations in the smaller localities near the border.